NEW YORK (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris made a surprise appearance on “Saturday Night Live” in the final days before the election, playing herself as the mirror-image doppelgänger of Maya Rudolph’s version of her in the cold open air of the show.

The first lines the candidate spoke as she sat across from Rudolph, their outfits identical, were drowned out by cheers from the audience.

“It’s nice to see you Kamala,” Harris said to Rudolph with a wide grin that she kept throughout the sketch. “And I’m just here to remind you that you have this.”

At the same time, the two said that supporters must “keep Kamala and carry on,” declared that they share each other’s “faith in the promise of America,” and delivered the signature “Live from New York, it’s Saturday night!”

Harris made the surprise trip to New York City with the election approaching, taking a break from the battleground states as she furiously campaigned in favor of NBC’s iconic sketch comedy show, where she hoped to generate buzz and appeal to a national audience.

Harris came to New York on Air Force Two after a campaign stop early Saturday evening in Charlotte, North Carolina. She was supposed to fly to Detroit, but once in the air, aides said she would make an unscheduled stop and the plane landed at LaGuardia Airport.

Harris arrived at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in Manhattan, where “SNL” is filming, shortly after 8 p.m., enough time for a quick rehearsal before the show airs live at 11:30 p.m. It’s the last “SNL” episode before Election Day on Tuesday.

The visit had not previously been announced, and an official familiar with Harris’ schedule only officially confirmed it to reporters traveling with the vice president just before the live broadcast began. The official insisted on anonymity to discuss the plans before they were made public.

Harris left immediately after the opening segment. She told reporters: “It was fun!” as she boarded the plane to leave New York.

Host John Mulaney and musical guest Chappell Roan shifted the show away from politics. Neither talked about the election.

Mulaney, the stand-up comic and former “SNL” writer, hosted for the sixth time and talked about his children with wife Olivia Munn, Catholicism and his stint in rehab.

Some expected Roan, the 26-year-old singer who has become a huge star in recent months, to make a political statement during her first appearance on the show. She has previously been fiercely critical of the Democratic party and refused to endorse Harris, although Roan has said several times that she plans to vote for her.

But she played it straight, or as straight as the wildly theatrical performer can. She sang her hit ‘Pink Pony Club’ on an all-pink set bathed in pink light.

Senator Tim Kaine also made a surprise appearance in a game show sketch in which the joke was that no one remembered him despite being Hillary Clinton’s running mate in 2016.

“It’s been less than eight years. What’s my name?’, he said, as the participants stood silent and stunned.

Rudolph first played Harris on the show in 2019 and has done so resumed her role This season, she did a spot-on impression of the vice president, calling herself “Momala” — a reference to the affectionate nickname her stepchildren gave her.

Her fellow former cast member Andy Samberg reappeared Saturday night as Harris’ husband, second gentleman Doug Emhoffstand-up comedian Jim Gaffigan played running mate Tim Walz, and longtime alum Dana Carvey once again played President Joe Biden.

Rudolph’s performance has received critical and comedic praise, including from Harris himself.

“Maya Rudolph – I mean, she’s so good,” Harris said last month on ABC’s “The View.” “She had the whole thing, the suit, the jewelry, everything!”

Jason Miller, senior advisor to former president and Republican candidate Donald Trumpexpressed surprise that Harris would appear on “SNL,” given what he characterized as her unflattering portrayal on the show. Asked if Trump had been invited to appear, he said: “I don’t know. Probably not.”

Politicians nonetheless have a long history on “SNL,” including Trump, who hosted the show in 2015 — though it’s unusual to appear so close to Election Day.

Hillary Clinton entered the 2008 Democratic presidential primaries when she appeared alongside Amy Poehler, who played her on the show and was known for her trademark, exaggerated cackle. The real Clinton asked herself during her performance: “Am I really smiling like that?”

Harris repeated that phrase in response to Rudolph’s display of her laugh in Saturday’s episode.

Clinton returned in 2016, running against Trump in a race she ultimately lost.

The first sitting president to appear on “SNL” was Republican Gerald Ford, who did so less than a year after the show’s debut. Ford appeared in an April 1976 episode hosted by his press secretary, Ron Nessen, and declared the show’s famous opening retort: ​​”Live from New York, it’s Saturday night.”

Then-Senator Barack Obama of Illinois appeared alongside Poehler posing as Clinton in 2007, and Republican Bob Dole was on the show in November 1996 — just 11 days after losing that year’s election to Bill Clinton. Dole consoled Norm Macdonald, who played the Kansas senator.

Then there was Tina Fey’s 2008 impression of vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin — and in particular her joke that “I can see Russia from my house.” It was so good that Fey ended up winning an Emmy and Palin himself appeared on the show in October, in the weeks before the election.

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Long, Miller and Weissert reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Jill Colvin in New York and Andrew Dalton in Los Angeles contributed to this report.